Sir Prosecutor
by EmeraldWings1992
Summary: Now free of the hypnotic spell of Labrelum, Zacharias Barnham decides he wants to continue being an Inquisitor, or, more correctly, a Prosecutor. After many long years of studying law, he moves to Los Angeles and begins working under Chief Prosecutor Miles Edgeworth. But how will he do on his first case... when he has to prosecute Luke Triton, going against Phoenix Wright? DONE
1. Prosecutor Zacharias Barnham

**A/N:** Hey guys! Here's the beginning of my next story! I hope you'll all enjoy!

For my new readers, all of my stories happen in the same universe. You **DON'T** have to read all of my stories though. They are standalones, for the most part.

That being said, I do have to explain something: Why Luke is attending a university that is not Gressensheller.

After Unwound Future, Luke and his family moved to America: Specifically LA, California, home of a certain spiky haired Defense Attorney. Originally there for a research project that went _horribly_ wrong (as seen in my story "The Professor's Apprentice"), Clark was offered Tenure at the Archeology school, Nodir University. Luke now attends Nodir University majoring in Archeology.

Hm… can't think of anything else! Luke is 18 and Phoenix, Miles, and Zacharias are 36.

Now, FORWARD!

…

Chapter One: Prosecutor Zacharias Barnham

 _The shadows of the Witches Court danced darkly in the corners of the room, the heat waves of the unseen fire causing everything to seem hazy. The young Inquisitor Zacharias Barnham stood tall behind his bench, glaring up at Alyssa Mira where she hung in the bird-cage like contraption._

 _This was his first time in court._

 _His first time facing a witch._

 _The witnesses lined up and gave their testimonies. The hapless Defender attempted to unravel their story and come up with evidence to prove his client innocent, but even he didn't believe in the poor woman._

 _Only one man did. One man believed that she might be innocent. Might not be a witch after all. And it was his job to prove that she was._

 _Despite the calm exterior of Barnham's appearance, he was sweating profusely under his armor. He feared the worse: that he would send an innocent girl to the most painful death of all._

 _But as a Knight, and an Inquisitor, he could not show these fears._

 _The Judge shook his head, clearly impatient with the night's proceedings, and slammed his gavel._

" _I find the defendant, Alyssa Mira, guilty of being a witch. Send her to the fire!" he roared. One of the night's pulled the lever, and the cage began to close around the woman._

" _NO!" she screamed, and her eyes locked with the inquisitor's, almost like she could read his doubts. "I'm not a witch! I'm not! You have to believe me!" she cried, her eyes welling with tears._

 _The face plate slammed closed. The cage dropped. A blood curdling scream erupted from the fire pit._

…

Zacharias Barnham's eyes flew open, a shuddering gasp catching in his throat, the scream still echoing in his ears.

It took him a minute to recognize the clean, crisp area in which he lay.

" _We are about to land. Please put your trays in the up position and buckle your seat belts. Thank you for flying with iFly,"_ A cool, automated voice announced over the speakers. Zacharias did as it asked before glancing out the window as the city below, still trying to catch his breath and ignore the chill running down his back due to the cold sweat.

…

It didn't take long for Zacharias to claim his luggage in the Los Angeles airport, nor to find the area where travelers would meet their families after a long voyage, or new friends who would make them feel at home. It was in the latter category that the ex-Knight fell as he searched the names on the signs held by the waiting people. He didn't know who he was looking for, just that the Chief Prosecutor said that someone would be here to meet him and take him to his new apartment.

Finally, his eye caught on his name, before rising to see the face above the sign. He was surprised to see that he recognized it.

"When you said there would be someone here to meet me, I hardly expected it to be the Chief Prosecutor himself," he said. Miles Edgeworth allowed the sign to hang by his side as he smirked at the man in front of him, holding his right hand out to shake. Zacharias complied.

"Prosecutor Barnham, I take it?" Miles asked, earning a nod from Zacharias. "It is a pleasure to finally meet you, after corresponding with you so long through email. However… I expected you to be younger," Edgeworth admitted. Zacharias smiled at the comment.

"Perhaps, had my life gone differently, I would have become a prosecutor before my thirties," he admitted. _However, I doubt the thought would have crossed my mind if I was never an Inquisitor…_ he added mentally.

"Perhaps this is for the better. A lot of young Prosecutors tend to allow the title to go to their head, especially if they're the next prodigy," Edgeworth said with a small chuckle, shaking his head as he lead his new companion out of the airport and to his car.

"Forgive if I'm wrong, Chief Prosecutor, but weren't you once a young 'prodigy?'" Barnham asked, remembering all he had learned about the man. Edgeworth simply shrugged, shaking his head once more.

"Indeed, but I learned that the role of a prosecutor went much… deeper then just getting a guilty verdict," he explained, causing Barnham to nod in understanding. They reached a cherry red sports car, which Miles popped the trunk to, allowing Zacharias to put his suitcase and carry on in, before they both climbed into the front.

"Prosecutor Barnham?" Miles asked after a while.

"Hm?"

"If you don't mind me asking, why did it take so long for you to get your Prosecutor's Badge?"

"Ah. You see, after my parents passed away, I dropped off the grid for a while," Zacharias began.

"Yes, I noticed that. Eleven years, in fact."

"Yes. Eleven… very long years. I didn't come back until I was already twenty-six years old. I attempted other jobs, such as baking, but nothing made me happy. None of those jobs felt like… my _calling_. So, at the age of thirty, I decided to try to become a prosecutor, but it took them another year until my background check could be finished, considering my disappearing act. Finally, though, I was able to enter law school, where it took me another five years to gain my badge, considering I was also supporting myself at the time," he explained. Miles nodded in understanding.

"That makes sense," he said softly, having more then enough experience in disappearing acts and becoming orphaned. The two fell into a companionable quiet, Zacharias watching the world outside his window as he tried to get a feel for his new home, Miles focusing on the road and silently digesting this new information.

It came to an end, however, as Miles pulled up to an apartment building.

"You are in unit 32B. Here is your key," he said, handing the key over. "It's already furnished, and the first month is paid by the PIC. Do you drive?"

"Yes."

"Then tomorrow, we will go rent you a car before work, and you can follow me to the Prosecutor's Building. How does eight a.m. sound?"

"Perfect. I will see you then, Chief Prosecutor," Zacharias said, climbing out of the car and gathering his stuff from the trunk. With a wave of his hand, he entered the building, where he found his new home and the start of his new life – the third, to be exact.

…

 **A/N:** I don't know why, but I see Zach and Miles becoming good friends.

Zach's story for before Labyrinthia and Labrelum Inc. was my own creation. His parents died in a tragic car accident when he was fifteen, and after a week in a foster home, he ran away. Labrelum Inc. found him and offered him a chance at a new life, wanting to see how everything would affect a young mind just coming into it (rather then being born into it). He was missing for eleven years.

Hm… can't think of anything else to put here, but I kind of really want to go play my video games, so… the next chapter probably won't be up until tomorrow. Until then, bye!


	2. Luke Triton

**A/N:** Whaaaat!? A day in between chapters for a story that's in progress!? I know! That's a first for me! Honestly, I had time to work on it yesterday, when I got home from work, but I just felt really… unmotivated. A lot of things upset me yesterday and the night before that just left me feeling kind of like a failure (I don't feel that way anymore!), so I just… cooked dinner and went to bed.

But I'm back and ready to write! Not sure how many chapters will be written today since I have a whole slew of errands to run with my mom later, but we shall see!

 **Review Reply to Gamergirl:** Thank you! There really is, especially with the back story I gave Zach. Also, with AA6, I didn't mean to do it that way, but happy coincidences, eh? I didn't actually play my game though…

On a side note, I love all of my reviewers, and Wolfiered23 already knows this, but if you look up spoilers for Ace Attorney 6, **PLEASE DO NOT TELL ME!** I like to be surprised as I play a game. Thank you for understanding.

Alright, ONWARD!

…

Chapter Two: Luke Triton

Bently Dinning Hall was crowded with students as everyone grabbed their dinner, sitting at the different tables and laughing with their friends. It made sense, after all, considering five in the evening was prime dinner time on Nodir University's campus.

However, Luke Triton, a freshmen in the Archeology major, was not having fun.

"What do you mean, you have nothing!" he demanded of the guy across the table from him. Tobis Lacker simply shrugged as he continued to shove food in his face. "Tobis, the proposal is due _tomorrow_ , and you haven't been pulling your weight at all!" Luke continued, his face growing hot with anger, his food untouched. "We agreed that you would find five sourced, and I would find five sources and write the proposal. _I can't write the proposal without those five sources!_ "

"Oh well. Sorry. Got busy," Tobis mumbled around his mouthful of food.

"You got… Tobis, this is half our grade! Our midterm! That's why it's due _during midterms week_! What do you mean you got busy!?" Luke demanded, before groaning, burying his hands under his blue hat, deep in his thick brown hair. Already, a dull, aching headache was pounding away in his temples as he imagined the all nighter he would be pulling tonight, searching for five, good sources and writing the proposal. "You are the laziest, most undependable lout ever…" Luke growled between his teeth.

"Whoa, hey, tha—" Tobis cut off in a strange gargle noise, prompting Luke to look up again. Tobis' eyes were wide, a hand to his throat. He coughed, and foamy saliva hit the table between the two boys with a wet _splat_. Luke jumped to his feet, startled, knocking his chair into the person seated behind him.

"Hey! Watch it!" the guy snapped before turning and freezing, his eyes wide. Tobis' eyes rolled into the back of his head, and he slumped forward onto the table. Luke's already wide eyes grew wider, and he darted forward, grabbing the boy's shoulders.

"Tobis? Tobis! Wake up! This isn't funny!" he cried.

Another boy, a few years older then Luke, ran over, gently pulling him off the prone boy and holding him back, while the kid Luke had disturbed came closer, gently putting his fingers to Tobis' neck, searching for a pulse. Finally, he pulled them away, a scared look on his face.

"He's… he's dead."

…

 _Zacharias Barnham looked around as he opened his eyes, surprised to find himself back in this place, though in the gallery, instead of his normal position._

 _The courtroom was hazy with smoke from the smoldering fire, cackling just a few feet away. A younger version of himself stood at the inquisitor bench. At this point, he was a seasoned inquisitor who, for the first time, met his match._

 _Ms. Kira, trapped in the Witch's Cage, was becoming hysterical. She grabbed the bars, tears in her eyes. "I beg you, please! She's… Please release me! Knights of the Court, isn't it your duty to protect the people of this town!? Give me another chance!" she begged. Zach frowned, turning to watch his younger double. He remembered this particular trial well._

 _"That is where you're wrong."The younger double said, and anger could be heard, simmering just beneath his voice. The spectator Zacharias shuddered, never realizing how scary he actually was._

 _"Huh?" Kira gasped._

 _"'Tis indeed a knight's duty to protect… we are impelled to protect the citizens of Labyrinthia…" the double agreed, before adding "against you and your ilk! The reason you were offered my protection until now was because your guilt was uncertain. There was the possibility that you were not a witch. The circumstances were such that it seemed another was guilty." He stood straight, unsheathing his sword and pointing it at the trembling woman. "That possibility has since disappeared and your innocence along with it," he said, a menacing edge to his voice."You now find yourself at the other end of my sword."_

 _"N-no…" Kira all but sobbed. Zach watched himself as he rose his sword, holding the hilt in front of his heart, the blade before his face, the point facing the sky._

 _"Vile witch, enemy of Labyrinthia! May the fires purge you from this land!"he spoke, almost as though he were chanting a spell himself._

 _Things seemed to blur at this moment as the smoke became thicker, begging for the flesh of the witch that hung just out of reach. Zach shuddered, trying to see through the smoke. He remembered Espella had interrupted the proceedings at this moment, but he could not hear or see what was going on._

 _"Bailiff! Ready the fire!"the judge suddenly yelled, before slamming his gavel. The smoke cleared just then, giving Zach a clear view of what was happening._

 _The cage began to slam closed, and Zach surged to his feet._

 _"This isn't real! None of this is real! She's not a witch! She's innocent!" he cried, rushing forward. His double looked up at him, before walking forward calmly, intercepting him. The younger version of Zacharias' eyes were blank, causing the older one, the one who knew the truth, to back peddle._

 _"You did this. You sent them to the fire."_

 _"YOU KILLED THEM!"_

 _…_

 _"_ NO!" Zacharias Barnham yelled, lunging up in bed. He was covered in a cold sweat, his entire body trembling, as his wide, gray eyes searched the strange bedroom, trying first to calm himself down, then to remember where he was.

 _America. My new apartment. I decided to go to bed because of jetlag,_ he remembered, telling himself a few times until his pounding heart finally calmed. He ran a hand through his soaked, red hair, taking a few more deep breaths before pulling the blanket back and standing.

 _RING RING! RING RING!_

Zach jumped, turning to look at his cell phone, before shaking his head.

"I'm too jumpy," he sighed softly, though he knew it was the result of his nightmare. He stopped for a moment, his hand hovering over the phone, as he thought of it.

That was the first time he'd had a dream, relived a memory, from the gallery. He never truly saw them from his own eyes, but always from a third point of view, hovering disembodied above the proceedings.

The sudden silence in the apartment brought his attention back to his phone as he realized he missed the call. With a sigh, he picked up the small electronic and checked it.

 _One missed call: Miles Edgeworth_

"Oh no," he mumbled, quickly hitting the callback button as he silently admonished himself.

What a great impression he was making on his boss.

" _Hello?_ " Edgeworth's voice said from the other line.

"Mr. Edgeworth, you called?"

" _Yes, actually. I'm just out front. A murder has happened, and I thought I would assign you to this case. I have the file with me,_ " the chief prosecutor explained. Zach glanced at the clock – 6:52 pm – before looking down at himself.

"Yes sir. I'll let you in, in a moment," he said before hanging up, throwing on a shirt, for he slept shirtless, and going to the door. Edgeworth came in and studied the man in front of him.

"Are you okay, Prosecutor Barnham? You look a little shaky," he asked, his narrow eyes becoming slightly worried. Zach smiled slightly at the man, leading his further in.

"I'm okay, sir. I just woke up, and I guess I'm feeling the effects of not eating since the plane," he explained, quickly coming up with a story. "Tea?"

"Please," Edgeworth said with a smile, taking the offered seat. Zach quickly set some to brew before bringing out a plate of cookies.

"I found these biscuits in the cabinet. Someone stocked the kitchen?" he asked.

"Yes. I wasn't sure if you'd have the energy to do so after your flight, so I had my assistant – well, Legal Aid – take care of it," Edgeworth explained, taking an offered cookie.

"Well, thank you," he said, before grabbing the tea and bringing it over. Edgeworth smiled his thanks before getting down to business.

"Just over an hour ago, there was a murder at Nodir University," he explained. Zacharias nodded, leaning forward slightly.

"Alright?"

"The initial investigation has found us a defendant, who has motive, means, and had the murder weapon on him," Edgeworth continued, taking a sip of his tea. He nodded appreciatively at its perfect flavor. People native to the United Kingdom, he decided, could brew the best tea.

"It sounds like a simple enough case," Zach observed, the slightest disappointment in his voice. Edgeworth smiled.

"It does, doesn't it? You are the newest Prosecutor, however, so it's only right that I would assign it to you." He pulled the file from his briefcase and passed it over. "Here is all the information on the case."

Zach opened the file and looked over the picture of the defendant before gasping, suddenly being shot back to the smoky courtroom.

 _A golden man in a top hat._

 _A young boy at the witness stand, tears in his eyes._

"Prosecutor Barnham?" Edgeworth asked, sounding a little concerned. Zach snapped out of it and looked up.

"I'm alright, Chief Prosecutor, just surprised."

"Oh? Why's that?"

"I know the defendant. I met him five years ago." He looked back at the file, starring at the name. "Luke Triton…"

…

 **A/N:** Tada! Alright, not sure what time the next chapter will be up, but I will make an effort for it to be today!


	3. Investigation - Day One

**A/N:** I'm baaaaack! Here's for the next chapter!

 **Review Reply to Gamergirl:** I'm so mean to these characters, hehe. Okay! I just wanted to make sure! As for how he was killed, don't worry. Some people might get it, others not. Either way, it'll be explained in this chapter!

Now, ONWARD!

…

Chapter Three: Investigation – Day One

The Wright Anything Agency, home to the famous Phoenix Wright and his two subordinates, Apollo Justice and Athena Cykes, slowly winded down for the night. Athena had went home around dinner time, leaving Phoenix and Apollo to finish up paperwork. Around seven o'clock, Phoenix stood and stretched his arms over his head.

"Are you almost finished, Apollo?" he asked.

"Just have to sign this, and… done," Apollo responded, gathering his papers together and putting them in a folder.

"Good. Can you—" Phoenix cut off as the office phone began to ring. Apollo looked up at it, before looking at Phoenix, who sighed, sitting once more and answering.

"The Wright Anything Agency, this is Phoenix Wright speaking, how can I help you?" he said.

" _Mr. Wright? Oh thank goodness you're still at the office. I don't know your mobile number,_ " the voice on the other end.

"I'm sorry, whose this?" he asked, recognizing the voice, but unable to place it.

" _I'm sorry, this is Clark. Clark Triton."_

"Oh, Mr. Triton. What can I do for you?" Phoenix asked, hearing the note of panic in the man's voice.

" _It's Luke. He… he's been accused of murdering a fellow classmate…"_ the man said. " _We can't think of anyone other then you who can help him. Please, Mr. Wright…_ "

"Wait, Luke!? But he would never do something like that," Phoenix said in a confused tone. Apollo's head perked up at the sound of a potential client. "Of course I'll take his case, Mr. Triton."

" _But you haven't even heard anything about his case! Are you sure?"_

"Of course. I know he's innocent, and I'm going to prove it. I'm going to the Detention Center now." He hung up and turned, spotting an excited Apollo.

"Another case, Mr. Wright?" he asked.

"Yes, but I'm going to personally take this one. It's for an old friend," he explained, grabbing his blue suit jacket and swinging it on.

"Well, maybe I could act as your Legal Aid this time around," Apollo said, following after the man as he exited the office. Phoenix glanced over his shoulder at the boy with an amused half-grin.

"Apollo, if I didn't know better, I'd think you'd want more murders to happen, just so you can take on cases," Phoenix said.

"Wh-what!?" Apollo gasped, his brown eyes growing wide at the implications. Phoenix simply laughed at his reaction, leading the way to the Detention Center.

…

Phoenix and Apollo waited as Luke was lead into the visitor's room. The young boy's eyes were lowered, and almost immediately, Phoenix could see the shock, and the guilt, in his eyes.

"Hello, Luke," Phoenix said. Luke looked up, and smiled slightly.

"Hello, Mr. Wright. Dad said you were going to take my case. Thanks," he said, his voice trembling slightly. Apollo studied him, surprised that Phoenix had such a young friend, and wondering why he seemed so… guilty. Especially since Phoenix was convinced of his innocence.

"Of course, Luke. I know you'd never commit murder. But… why don't you tell me what happened?"

"Well, I was having dinner with one of my classmates, and group partner, Tobis Lacker… We were… discussing a project that's due tomorrow, when he suddenly—" Luke cut off, shivering slightly at the image. Phoenix waited patiently. "He seemed like he was choking, then he collapsed. I tried to wake him up, but by then, he was already… you know…"

"Dead," Phoenix supplied, and Luke nodded.

"Yeah."

"Mr. Triton, why did they arrest you? Just having dinner with the victim isn't a crime," Apollo asked. Luke looked up, noticing the attorney in red for the first time. Phoenix realized he never introduced the two.

"Ah, Apollo, this is Luke Triton. Luke, this is my employee, Apollo Justice."

"Ah. Please, just call me Luke. I... Tobis and I were arguing. Apparently, that's the motive…" he explained, before tugging his hat down over his eyes, a mannerism Phoenix immediately recognized from Luke's old mentor. Phoenix sighed.

"There's something else, Luke. What has you so upset?"

"I… I was so mad at him… and the last thing I ever said to him was that he was a last, undependable lout!" he cried, looking up at Phoenix, tears welling in the corners of his eyes. "That was the last thing he ever heard, and I said it to him!" He pulled his hat down again, his shoulders shaking slightly. Phoenix placed a hand on the glass, wishing he could wrap and arm around him to comfort him, just as he did five years ago when the professor had seemingly been turned to gold.

"Luke, it'll be okay. I'll make sure you're given an innocent verdict and bring the real killer to justice," he promised. Luke studied him for a moment, peeking out from beneath his hat, before nodding slightly.

"Alright. Thank you, Mr. Wright, Mr. Justice."

…

The first stop for the two defense attorneys was the scene of the crime: Bently Dinning Hall of Nodir University. It was a large, sprawling cafeteria, full of tables both big and small, along with chairs. In the middle was a buffet like line, currently clean and empty of food. This Dinning Hall, it seemed, closed at seven.

Police moved all around the dinning room, searching for evidence to the murder. Phoenix had to flash his badge in order to gain access.

"Hm… reminds me of one of the dinning halls at Ivy University," Phoenix hummed as he looked around.

"That's where you went to college, right? As an art major?" Apollo asked, looking up at his boss. Phoenix chuckled.

"Yep. And where I switched majors to law," he added, pushing his hands into his pockets as the two walked over to the epicenter of police activity. There they found a familiar face.

"Ema!" Apollo gasped in surprise. She looked up, a hand on her him.

"Hey Apollo! Mr. Wright. You're representing Mr. Triton?" she asked, crossing her arms as she studied them.

"Yeah. Think you can help us?" Mr. Wright asked with a smirk. Ema sighed, shaking her head.

"I wish I could, but the prosecution has this one in the bag," she said, pulling a folder from her bag. "This is the autopsy report."

"Hm…" Phoenix hummed as he studied it.

 _Died at approx. 5:30 pm on Oct. 6. No physical trauma, but traces of poison found in his system. Only signs is bloody foam at mouth._

"Any idea what time of poison?" Apollo asked as he read it over Phoenix's shoulder.

"I wish," Ema said with a frown, crossing her arms. "There are no signs of asphyxia, the brain shutting down… anything. Just the foam, which shows that his saliva glands went into over drive just before death, but multiple poisons could have caused that.

"Then how exactly did he die? What did the poison do?" Phoenix asked, carefully filing the report away.

"The poison, whatever it was, stopped his heart. Death was instant," she explained.

"And Luke was arrested due to their arguing. That's the motive, right?" Apollo asked. Ema nodded.

"Unfortunately, that's all the information I'm at liberty to give you. But you can take a look around, if you want," she offered. Phoenix smiled warmly.

"Thanks, Ema," he said, and the two attorneys looked around. Phoenix decided it would be best to start at the table Luke and Tobis sat at. Their dinners still sat there, Luke's untouched salad and now cold tea, Tobis' mostly eaten salad and almost finished soda.

"Ema, did you test Tobis' dinner for poison?" Apollo asked, looking over at the detective. Ema turned, adjusting the pink glasses on top her head.

"Of course. It's a mixture of spinach, chicken, ranch dressing, and an unidentifiable leaf," she explained. Apollo nodded, quickly writing this down. Just as he went to turn back to the table, a forensic scientist ran over.

"Detective Skye! The results for the unidentified leaves just came back. They're Triflingara leaves."

"What!?" Ema gasped, a hand jumping to her cheek.

"'Triflingara?'" Phoenix asked.

"A strong type of poisonous plant. Every part of it is poisonous," Ema explained. Just a few leaves will kill a fully grown man almost instantly. And the only signs are the bloody foam, and a stopped heart," she explained.

"Mr. Triton's salad had the same leaves mixed in," the forensic scientist explained, studying his clipboard. "However, there are no signs of his being eaten at all."

Phoenix frowned, crossing his arms in thought as he took in this information.

"Mr. Wright, it's getting late," Apollo said, looking at his watch. Mr. Wright did as well, and was surprised to find it already after midnight.

"You might want to get some sleep," Ema said. "Court starts tomorrow, and I hear this new prosecutor is a doozy."

…

 **A/N:** And here we go! Alright, time to go to bed for work tomorrow!


	4. Trial - Day One

**A/N:** Another day, another chapter! Pearl is 16 here.

Pearl and Luke know each other from my other story, "The Professor's Apprentice." You do not have to read that to understand their relationship. Basically, Clark's new assignment was to research an artifact found in Kurain, so Luke and Pearl met then. Clark and Brenda wound up kidnapped, while Luke and Pearl traveled around southern California in order to solve a puzzle and save them. They were 11 and 13 at the time.

The two become a couple in my other story, "Her Special Someone," when they're 18 and 20 (Luke's junior year).

 **Review Reply to Gamergirl:** Not everyone would see it! No worries. As for being mean, you're right. It's a lot of fun, and it makes the stories interesting, hehe. I agree, there really needs to be more Phoenix and Apollo working together. We get Apollo and Athena, and Phoenix and Athena, but never Phoenix and Apollo. As for Phoenix's reaction, it's going to be a lot of fun to write, hehe.

Finally, I think I TOTALLY screwed up the timeline. PL vs AA happened eight years ago, not five… I think… Meaning Zach met Luke eight years ago. However, I think this totally screws over almost ALL of my stories timelines, so… please just ignore it. Heh.

…

Chapter Four: Trial – Day One

Clark and Brenda Triton hovered over their son in the defendant's lobby as they awaited the beginning of the first trial. Luke himself still seemed in slight shock, and was upset, but not nearly as much as yesterday. Phoenix, on the other hand, was studying the evidence he and Apollo had gathered the day before.

"I feel like we go into trials less and less prepared each time," Apollo mused, giving vent to a sigh. Phoenix smiled.

"Yet, we tend to commit a full turnabout in the end, don't we?" he replied, causing the younger attorney to chuckle.

"That's very true," he admitted, before looking again at the two meals. "Mr. Wright, why do you think Luke's salad had poison in it as well? Were they trying to kill him too?" he asked.

"What!?" Brenda gasped, having overheard the young man's question. Before anyone else could answer, however, the doors banged open.

"Nick!"

"Maya?"

"Luke!"

"Pearl!?"

Two spirit mediums rushed over, the older one to Phoenix, the younger to Luke. Maya Fey gave the man a quick hug before looking over at the younger two. Pearl threw her arms around her oldest friend in a bone crushing hug before pulling back, inspecting him.

"Are you okay? I know the detention center can be rough. You didn't eat any of the poison either, did you?" she whirled on the dumbfounded attorney. "I swear to Ami Fey, Mr. Nick, if you don't get him a full acquittal, you'll regret it!" she threatened, pulling up one of her sleeves in an almost threatening way. Phoenix, remembering how hard the girl could slap when she was nine, and knowing she's probably only gotten stronger with age, rose his hands defensively.

"Whoa, whoa, Pearls. That's what I'm here to do, right?" he reasoned.

Before she could answer – or anyone could say anything – a bailiff poked his head into the room.

"Will the defendant and his lawyers please enter the courtroom. The trial is about to begin," he called before disappearing. Phoenix smiled warmly at his young friend.

"Don't worry, Luke. We'll win this," he said.

"Maybe not today, but we will," Apollo added with his own grin.

"Thanks, guys," Luke said, their smiles infectious as a small one crept onto his own face.

…

As worried as he had been for Luke, Phoenix had never even thought of who the prosecution might be. However, the two men standing across the courtroom were the last people he ever expected to see. Especially since the one was dressed entirely different then he was used to.

Rather then a suit of armor, the prosecutor wore an off white suit jacket with a white shirt beneath, and a dark purple ascot tie. His pants were black slacks.

Just as well, Zacharias Barnham hadn't expected to run into the only defender to ever have beaten him.

 _…Heat..._

 _…Smoke…_

 _…Chanting…_

 _Stop it, Zacharias!_ He thought harshly to himself, shaking himself out of the flashes.

"Are you alright?" Chief Prosecutor Miles Edgeworth asked from next to him at the bench, gaining a nod in reply. Zach then continued his scrutiny of the man in front of him. In the eight years since they'd last met, Phoenix Wright had certainly grew in confidence and refinement. His suit now included a waist coat and what appeared to be the chain of a pocket watch. Despite the memories attached to this particular man, if he could overcome them, then this, surely, would be fun.

"Court will now begin for the case of Luke Triton. Is the defense ready?" the judge asked. Zacharias smiled in slight amusement at his resemblance to the one from Labyrinthia.

 _They could be twins…_

"Y-yes, your honor," Phoenix said, his words catching slightly on his surprise.

"Mr. Wright? Are you okay?" Apollo muttered. Phoenix nodded.

"Is the prosecution ready?"

"Yes, your honor," Zach replied, before looking back across the room. "It's been a long time… Sir Blue Knight," he said, causing confusion from the judge, Apollo, and Edgeworth. Phoenix smiled slightly at that, while Luke stared at the man, his mouth hanging open slightly.

"Indeed… Inquisitor Barnham. Or should I say Prosecutor?"

"I look forward to another battle of logic and wits," Zach said with a smile.

"You two know each other?" Miles asked in surprise.

"Yes. We met… a while ago," Zach said.

"When Maya and I disappeared while away in England for the Legal League of Attorneys," Phoenix explained further.

"Chief Prosecutor, I'm surprised to see you standing at the bench, and not ever at the head of the prosecution team!" the Judge said, studying the man.

"I am personally overseeing the newest addition to the office," Miles explained.

"Alright then. Well, Prosecutor Barnham, your opening statement, if you will," the Judge asked. Zach took a deep breath and nodded.

"Just last night, there was murder on Nodir Campus. 'Twas a tragedy, really. A young man was poisoned in the dinning hall. Death was instantaneous," Zach explained, one hand behind his back, the other on the desk in front of him. He was the epitome of calmness and collectedness, something Phoenix found himself slightly envious of.

"Wow. I've met some calm lawyers, but never like him. It's actually pretty cool," Apollo muttered, his arms crossed as he watched the prosecutor.

Okay, not so slightly envious.

"The Prosecution would like to call their first witness to the stand – the detective in charge of the investigation."

Detective Ema Skye stepped forward to the witness stand.

"Name and occupation," Zach asked.

"Ema Skye, Homicide detective," she said, an ever present bag of snackaroos in her hands, eyeing the prosecutor. He graced her with a charming smile, causing the woman to flush slightly, and Phoenix was sure he heard grinding teeth from Apollo.

"Alright, Detective Skye. Please, tell us of the murder in more detail."

"Yes, Prosecutor Barnham," she said, before taking a deep breath and beginning.

"As Prosecutor Barnham said, it happened last night in the Bently Dinning Hall of Nodir University of poisoning, at approximately 5:30."

" _Hold it!"_ Phoenix shouted, getting right down to business and pressing the first statement. "Are you sure this is the time the poison was administered?" he asked. Ema fiddled with the glasses on top of her head.

"Of course, Mr. Wright. After all, it was a fast acting poison. I'll be getting to that," she said before crossing her arms in thought.

"The victim, Mr. Lacker, and the defendant, Mr. Triton, were having dinner together."

" _Hold it!_ How did they know each other?" Phoenix asked.

"Both are archeology majors, and were working together on a class project that was due… well, today actually," Ema explained. Phoenix nodded, allowing her to continue.

"Witnesses report that the two were having an argument, and Mr. Triton confirmed this."

" _Hold it!_ What was the argument about?" Phoenix asked, knowing this was what the prosecution was claiming as the motive. He was not disappointed.

"Does it really matter, Sir Blue Knight?" Zach asked, brushing his red bangs from his eyes as he shook his head. "'Twas a motive to murder. The content means nothing, be it on woman, grades, money… anything. In the heat of the moment, anything is possible."

 _Barnham knows Luke wouldn't kill over anything small – after all, he knows Luke. But it's his job to convict him, so he's trying to cover it up, especially with Mile's hovering right next to him_ , Phoenix thought, glancing at the Chief Prosecutor, who had a half amused smirk on his face. At his silence, Zach nodded for Ema to continue.

"After a few bites of his dinner, Mr. Lacker showed signs of Triflingara poisoning."

" _Hold it!_ What were these signs?" Phoenix demanded.

"Well, really, there's only one sign: Bloody foam at the mouth. As I stated yesterday, the poison simply stopped his heart, resulting in the death."

"You also said multiple other poisons could cause the same signs though," Phoenix countered. "How did you determine it was this one specifically?"

"Yes, well… that brings me to my next point," Ema said with a frown.

"After our initial investigation, we arrested Luke Triton due to finding that he had motive, means, and was in possession of the murder weapon."

" _Hold it!"_ Phoenix's voice cracked slightly. With those three pieces of evidence, that meant the case was closed, the trial over, before it began. "What do you mean by that!?"

"The motive," Ema began, ticking off her fingers. "Was their argument. The means? He had dinner waiting for Mr. Lacker, who had been late." She held up two fingers, before slowly raising the third. "The murder weapon." With a sigh, she pulled a baggy from her bag, which contained a smaller baggy full of leaves. "This… was found in Mr. Triton's bag when we searched him. It contains Triflingara leaves," she explained, causing a loud gasp and muttering from the gallery.

"M-Mr. Wright! What are we going to do?" Apollo hissed.

Phoenix's heart pounded against his chest as he stared at the baggy, his brain stalling for an answer.

He believed Luke didn't commit the murder. After all, he was a client, and Phoenix always believed in his clients. But beyond that, he was a friend.

"Well, Sir Baker?" Zach asked in a mocking tone, gaining more confusion. Phoenix ground his teeth together in frustration, but the nickname had the desired effect.

 _Something… I need something!_ Phoenix thought frantically.

"Well, this certainly puts the last nail in the coffin, as they say," the judge said. "With the overwhelming evidence, I see no reason to prolong this trial. I will now announce my verdict."

 _"OBJECTION!"_ Phoenix yelled, pointing at the judge, who jumped.

"Why… yes, Mr. Wright?" he asked.

"The defense argues that to give a verdict now would be premature!"

"Excuse me?"

"There is a contradiction between these three pieces of evidence, your honor. If my client had the poison, he would have had to gotten it ahead of time, since I'm sure Triflingara leaves are not common, making this a premeditated murder. Then, as he made his and Mr. Lacker's dinners, he would have added them to the platters before even seeing Mr. Lacker that night. However, the motive, their argument, would have _came after these preparations!_ " he yelled, pointing across the room and at the Prosecutor's bench. Zach started slightly in surprise, before smirking.

"Very good, Sir Blue Knight. Unfortunately, we have another witness who can clear up this little discrepancy," he explained, before nodding at Ema. She graced him with a smile (more teeth grinding from Apollo), before stepping down. In her place stepped a young man, twenty years old, with a black Mohawk, heavy eyeliner, and multiple face piercings. Apollo cringed slightly at all of the metal in his face, rubbing his own gingerly.

"Name and occupation," Zach asked.

"Jakob Ronald, student and Resident Assistant of Jury Dorm at Nodir U," he said.

"This guy's a Resident Assistant? Scary…" Apollo mumbled, making Phoenix chuckle.

"Please tell us about the arguments you've heard between the victim and the defendant," Zach pressed.

"Alright. Tobis is a resident of mine," Jakob began.

" _Hold it!_ A 'resident?'" Phoenix asked. He knew what that meant, having lived in a dorm himself, but he wasn't sure everyone else understood.

"A student who lives in the dorm, on the floor I'm in charge of. In this case, Jury Hall, fifth floor," Jakob elaborated. Phoenix nodded, and he continued.

"I've never really had trouble with him, or Luke, until he and Tobis started this project. Even in the beginning, it wasn't that bad."

" _Hold it!_ Did Luke visit often before the project?"

"Yes. He has another friend who lives on my floor as well, but he's always been polite. A perfect gentleman, I've heard a few ladies say." Jakob shrugged. "His temper seemed a little shorter a few weeks into the project, but it was a subtle change."

"However, as midterms week approached, Luke and Tobis began arguing, loud enough for the entire floor to hear."

" _Hold it!_ What were these arguments about?"

"The work load. I mean, a project worth half his grade, with his father being on the department's board? I don't blame Luke for being angry. Most of the time, Luke was doing all of the work, and I know it frustrated him, what with having other classes on top of that. But it did still disturb the other residents, so I had to deal with it," Jakob explained. Luke peeks over at his father, but Clark had other things on his mind then his son doing a project really meant for two people.

"Well, how exactly did you deal with it?" Phoenix asked.

"I've had to cite both of them, which is especially bad for Luke."

" _Hold it!_ Why?"

"First, he wasn't a resident. Usually, after so many citations, it's 'kicked off campus,' then 'kicked out of school.' Luke already lived off of campus, so it would have jumped right to being kicked out of the school. Not only that, but I've heard Luke was going on scholarships. Too many citations could make him loose that. Finally, since his father worked on campus, and he lived with him, Luke couldn't exactly hide the write ups from his parents, like most of the students do. Overall, it was a loose-loose situation for him."

 _You're not helping my case,_ Phoenix thought bitterly. Jakob decided then to continue.

"Everything seems to add up to a motive. Sorry…" he added the last to the boy in the defendant's chair, who simply kept his eyes on the ground in front of him.

"I hate to say it, Mr. Wright, but your case is looking more and more grim…" the judge said. Phoenix took a deep breath. _I needed something – anything. I know Luke didn't do this, so why—that's it!_

"With all do respect, your honor, there is still one piece of questionable evidence."

"Yes?"

" _Take that!_ Luke's dinner from last night. Untouched, and thankfully so. Mixed in with the salad are the same leaves found in that bag. My question is _why?_ Why would Luke poison his own food too?"

"To make it look more convincing, Sir Baker," Zach said in a bored tone. "After all, who would suspect a killer to poison his own food? But that would explain why he didn't touch it."

"I think not, Inq—Prosecutor Barnham. Think about it. You're going to meet someone you've been arguing with quite a lot. Emotions are running high. He's late, so you decide to make his dinner, as well as your own, and you decide to poison him out of frustration. Knowing things might get a little heated, and you will most likely not be thinking straight, would you still put poison in your own food as well?" Phoenix said, laying out a very logical argument. Zach winced back, bringing his arm up in a defensive posture. The defense attorney had a very solid point, he had to admit.

"I agree. I would be afraid I would eat without thinking!" the judge exclaimed, for once on Phoenix's side.

"Very well, Sir Blue Knight. I concede to your point," he said.

"Sir Blue Knight? Sir Baker? What is this, the medieval times? You can't even cook!" Apollo hissed, although Phoenix choose to ignore him.

"However, Mr. Triton was still in possession of the murder weapon!"

"And how did he get his hands on it!?" Phoenix demanded. "After all, Triflingara plants aren't common, nor is the knowledge of them! Mr. Triton doesn't study _plants!_ This in of itself is still a mystery!" he yelled, pointing at the prosecutor. Miles, his arms crossed, glanced sideways at the new Prosecutor, who had winced once more. He then stood up tall, straightening his suit jacket.

"Your blade is much sharper then when we last met," he admitted. Apollo shivered slightly at how similar that sounded to Blackquill's lines. "Again, I concede."

"As do I. At first glance, this case seemed open and shut, but obviously there are still too many questions in need of answers. I order both the prosecution and defense look into these matters. Court is dismissed until tomorrow!" the judge announced, slamming his gavel. Phoenix gave a soft sigh, knowing they managed to squeeze a day out by sheer luck.

"We need to be more prepared, Apollo. We won't be so lucky tomorrow," he admitted. Apollo smirked back at his boss.

"Oh, common, Mr. Wright. Whatever happened to 'committing a full turnabout in the end?'" he asked, only to receive an eye roll from the older man.

…

 **A/N:** And here we are, another chapter! I was going to have Luke testify, but his testimony is rather pointless at this point, since I've already addressed his feelings about his last words in the previous chapter.

This… took about four hours to write. Be happy with it… OR ELSE! Hehe.


	5. Investigation - Day Two

**A/N:** Alright, here we go! Sorry for how long this took. Work and spending time with the family took up all of my time, hehe. But I'm back and ready to write!

 **Review Reply to Gamergirl:** I won't tell anyone, no worries, haha. I had a lot of fun with the reaction, and Apollo's slight snarky-ness. Glad you have a favorite quote from my stories! That would be a fun case, but thankfully for the Defense Team, Miles is little more then an observer. Barnham is interested in what Phoenix has been up to, especially once he finds out Phoenix has a 16 or 17 year old daughter, but that's a conversation for another time. I'm glad the timeline didn't throw you off!

Well, here we go!

…

Chapter Five: Investigation – Day Two

Despite his appearance in court this morning, Zacharias Barnham was exhausted. To say his night before was restless would be an understatement. Nightmares – twisted memories – plagued him all night.

Now, he found himself on Nodir University, having searched for, and found, clues as to the origin of the Triflingara leaves.

"Look, Nick! It's Barnham!" a very familiar voice gasped, prompting the man to look up from his notes. Coming towards him were Phoenix, Apollo, and Maya.

 _Help me, Nick!_

 _NO!_

Zach shook his head, dispelling the memories, before looking at the three again. The slight blank look that flashed into his eyes didn't escape Phoenix's notice though.

"Sir Blue Knight. Ms. Fey." He turned his eyes to Apollo. "Mr…"

"Justice. Apollo Justice," he introduced, shaking the prosecutor's hand. "I work for Mr. Wright," he explained.

"Ah." He glanced sidelong at Phoenix. "Congratulations on the apprentice," he said with a smirk, causing the man to laugh.

"Uh… if you don't mind me asking, you do you keep calling him 'Sir Blue Knight'?" Apollo asked.

"Nick and Mr. Barnham were once 'Knights of the Court,' right Nick?" Maya said teasingly, giving Phoenix a coy smile.

"What? Knights? Mr. Wright?" Apollo asked in disbelief, causing Maya to laugh.

"Gee, thanks Apollo." He shook his head. "Right after the Hawthorne case, Maya and I were sent to London by the Legal League of Attorneys, where we were winded up in the… storybook like town of Labyrinthia," Phoenix explained.

"'Storybook like?'" Apollo asked.

"There were witches and knights! It was like something out of the Dark Ages!" Maya explained. "And, that's where we met Luke and Professor Layton."

"Huh."

"The Inquisitors, such as myself, would prosecute those accused of witchcraft against a defender. We were considered the Knights of the Court," Zach continued, crossing his arms. "Once Mr. Wright proved his blade to be sharp, he earned the title of a knight in my eyes, thus 'Sir Blue Knight.'"

"And 'Sir Baker?'" Apollo asked. Zach chuckled at that, shaking his head.

"When we first arrived, we were hypnotized into believing we'd always lived there. And that… well, we worked in a bakery," Phoenix admitted. "So, when I introduced myself in court, I called myself a baker without thinking."

"And until his memories returned, he did rather horribly in defending his client," Barnham added.

"Ah, okay," Apollo said with a grin. "So court went as well as always."

"Watch it," Phoenix said with no real threat behind it.

"I am glad your first client there wasn't me though," Maya said thoughtfully.

"Yeah, that happened _after_ I remembered all the other times I had to defend you in court," Phoenix said with a roll of his eyes.

"I doubt you ever got close to punching the prosecutors in those cases," Zach said, not allowing himself to think of the chaotic minutes in that courtroom where Maya was dropped into the flames.

"Wait, what?" Maya asked, perking at the sound of that.

"After… everything, I found him, along with Luke and Espella, outside the courthouse. I'm almost certain Sir Blue Knight here was having an emotional breakdown. I hadn't been aware that relationship between you two ran so deep."

"H-hey!" Phoenix gasped, his cheeks tingeing pink slightly. Maya grinned hugely, clasping her hands together in front of her.

"Oh, Nick!" she squealed, elbowing him slightly.

"Maya, stop it!"

"Anyways, we should really continue our investigation," Apollo said, realizing they were burning daylight.

"Quite right. I must be going as well. I suggest looking into Quanter Hall," Barnham said with a curt nod, before striding off. Discussing the events of Labyrinthia had taken it's toll on the already exhausted prosecutor, but he knew he still had evidence to find.

Phoenix, Maya, and Apollo watched as the ex-knight walked away. Apollo could tell the conversation had drained the man, not to mention bothered him, from the small tell of the knuckles on his right hand tensing.

"Nick… do you think he's okay?" Maya asked. "He seems… different."

"I don't really know, Maya. But he did give us a hint as to where to start our investigation. Common, let's get to Quanter Hall.

…

The trio soon found Quanter Hall, which turned out to be the Biology Building, with the top floor, the fifth, being dedicated to Botany.

"Maybe there's a Triflingara plant in here," Apollo mumbled, looking around as they entered the greenhouse like room.

"Excuse me, but can I help you?" a sweet voice asked, prompting the trio to look over. Amongst the plants, wearing gardening gloves and a simple, light blue dress, was a young woman. Her pale, blond hair was done in two braided pig-tails running down her shoulders, and her wide, innocent dark eyes studied them.

"Yes, we're investigating the murder of Tobis Lacker—H-hey, why are you crying!?" Phoenix asked, his voice suddenly raising into panic as the girl's dark eyes welled up with tears at the name.

"Tobis… oh Tobis…" she whimpered, pulling one of her gloves off to wipe the back of her hand over her eyes.

"Were you close to him?" Maya asked softly. The girl nodded, her lips trembling.

"W-we were… we were dating," she choked out another sob. "Triton better get the full punishment for what he did!"

"Whoa, whoa, hey there," Phoenix said, making a calming gesture with his hands. The girl peeked up, then spotted the attorney's badge, and her lips hardened into a thin line.

"You're Triton's lawyers. You're trying to get him proven innocent for this! How _dare_ you…" she hissed, a slight hiccup in her voice.

"We're trying to find the truth, that's all, Miss…" Phoenix trailed off, realizing introductions were never made.

"Isabella Donald. Please, just call be Isabella," she said with a huff.

"It's nice to meet you, Isabella. I'm Phoenix Wright, and this is Maya Fey and Apollo Justice." Maya waved and Apollo nodded as Isabella glanced at each of them. "We want to bring Mr. Lacker's killer to justice, which means we have to uncover the truth."

"Alright…" Isabella said, crossing her arms and looking at the older lawyer.

"Are you a biology student here?" Apollo asked.

"Yeah. Botany. That's why I'm allowed up here," she explained. Phoenix nodded.

"Do you know what Triflingara is, then?"

"Of course. We have a plant here, and the first thing we learn is to not touch it with our bare hands," Isabella explained, leading the way over to said plant. To Phoenix, it looked like any other plant: a straight, tall stalk with little diamond shaped leaves hanging off.

"Hey, this looks a little like Charley," Maya said with a grin.

"I still can't believe Charley's alive…" Apollo mumbled, having heard of the office plant's origins.

"Won't be if you keep overwatering him," Phoenix mumbled, a hand to his chin as he studied the plant. "So every part of this plant is poisonous?" he asked, ignoring Apollo's huff as he looked over at Isabella.

"Yes, though only to ingesting it."

"Why does the school keep it then?" Maya asked.

"Some of the students study the poisonous properties of the plant," Isabella explained. "I noticed that some of the leaves were missing the other day." She pointed to a few bare spots on the stalk. "And Triton was found with a baggy of them in his bag. Isn't that conclusive evidence?"

"No, not in this situation. There's reason to doubt he's truly guilty," Phoenix explained, glancing over to Apollo, who already took a picture of the plant and was taking notes. He nodded in approval before turning back to Isabella.

…

A sharp knock on his office door was all it took to make the dozing Zach nearly fall out of his chair. He hadn't been deeply enough asleep to dream, which suited him just fine, considering the kind of dreams he would have had. He cleared his throat slightly, straightening himself in his chair.

"It's open!" he called. Miles Edgeworth walked in, looking around the office with a nod of approval. It was small, but comfortable with an amazing view. On the one wall hung pictures, some of himself with a small, white dog, others of a woman with dark purple hair and sharp, soul piercing eyes, and older ones of a happy couple. His desk was slightly messy with papers and folders, and a tea tray sat to the side.

"I see you have made yourself comfortable," Miles said, coming and sitting in one of the chairs. Barnham smiled, resting back in his chair.

"Yes. I hope you don't mind? I just thought, since I'll be here a while, perhaps permanently, I might as well liven up my workspace."

"That's fine." Edgeworth sighed. "Zacharias, I need to talk to you," he said. Zach's heart sank, wondering if his assumption of how long he would be here was indeed, wrong.

"Yes, Chief Prosecutor?" he asked softly.

"You seem exhausted. There are moments where you seem to check out as well, though not for long. And there are moments where you seem… shaky."

"Sir, I assure you, I'm—" Zach started, before getting cut off by the chief prosecutor.

"I've been there."

"Huh?"

"I recognize the signs, because I've been in your shoes. You're reliving memories, traumatizing ones, which are robbing you of your sleep and, at points, effecting your life. Am I correct?" Miles asked, reaching over and pouring himself a cup of tea from the steaming tea pot. Zach didn't care, his thoughts still on Miles' words. Finally, he sighed.

"Yes."

"Talking about it might help," Miles said, giving the other man a pointed look. Zach hesitated a moment, before sighing and topping his tea off.

"As I told you, I lost my parents when I was young," he started, to which Miles nodded. "Fifteen, to be precise. It was a car accident. My mother died instantly, my father… almost right after he arrived at the hospital."

"Were you in the car?" Miles asked.

"No. They were coming to get me from the shopping centre when it happened." He took a sip and sighed. "They were my only living relatives… so I was put into a foster home. I couldn't stand it though, and ran away within the week.

"Thus you dropping off the grid," Miles said, connecting the dots. "But where did you go?"

"I was living on the street for a while, until Labrelum Inc found me."

"Labrelum? The pharmaceutics company?" Miles asked. Zach nodded, explaining all about the hypnotism, Labyrinthia, becoming a Knight and Inquisitor, and finally… the witch trials.

"I know they weren't real, but… at the same time, in the moment… they _were_. I was sending these women to their death, in a fiery pit. They were being burned alive. And there was always the chance they might be innocent, and to find out that every single one of them _were_ , to still put them through that trauma—"

Miles quickly put his teacup on the desk and leaned forward, putting a hand on Zach's shoulder and cutting him off before he could start rambling. Zach looked down.

"I'm sorry for that…" he muttered.

"You have no reason to be. I understand. The women didn't actually die though… did they?"

"Thankfully no. And… I try to remind myself of that, but sometimes… it's hard. I haven't… I can't keep the nightmares away. Never been able to. The waking flashes used to be rare, but… meeting with Wright, Fey, and Luke again…"

"What do they have to do with this?" Miles asked, before remembering Zach and Phoenix had met before. "Was it in Labyrinthia that you met Wright?"

"Yes. They were involved in a few cases. Ms. Fey was even a defendant."

"That doesn't surprise me," Miles said, shaking his head before looking at Zach again. "As for how to stop the nightmares… perhaps it'll help if you do something connected to pleasant memories before you fall asleep. That way, your mind will be focused on that."

"Maybe… I think I'll try that. Now I just have to think of what," he said with a smile.

"I've read that sounds, smell, and taste are the strongest sense triggers for memories. I hope that helps you," Miles said, picking his tea up again.

"I'm sure it will," Zach said, taking his own tea again. He then thought back to the chief prosecutor's earlier words.

"Sir, if you don't mind me asking… do you still have nightmares?"

"No, thankfully. A close friend helped with that. One day, I'll tell you about it," he said, closing his eyes with another sip of tea.

…

 **A/N:** And here's the end! Alright, not much investigation, but this story is supposed to be mostly about Zach. Ah well, don't worry! Phoenix and all didn't find anything more!

I love how close I'm making Zach and Miles. They'll be good friends! And yes, those pictures are Constantine and Eve (Darklaw).

And yes, Miles is talking about the nightmares he had for fifteen years when he thought he killed his father. His fear of earthquakes is how it effects his day to day life.


	6. Trial - Day Two

**A/N:** Another trial day! Hopefully this one doesn't take me four hours to write. Ugh…

 **Review Reply to Gamergirl:** You reviewed just in time! I was about to post this, haha. Yay I feel loved. As for why they would keep that… that's just something that would happen in the AA series. I mean… look at the kind of stuff Dahlia's ex was cooking up in their lab at Ivy U… Edgeworth is already giving him ideas! And yes. I couldn't see him totally disconnecting from Labyrinthia (or a certain purple-haired woman…).

Okay, ONWARDS!

…

Chapter Six: Trial – Day Two

"Court will now continue for the trial of Luke Triton. Is the prosecution ready?" the judge asked once everyone was settled.

"Yes, your honor," Zach said from where he stood next to Miles at the bench. Despite his attentive posture and sharp eyes, the purplish tint beneath those eyes gave away the fact that he hadn't gotten much rest the night before. Although the judge couldn't see it, everyone else could.

"Is the defense ready?" the judge asked. Phoenix looked up at him and gave a determined nod.

"Yes, your honor."

"Yesterday the defense made the point that the prosecution's order of events were a little bizarre, especially when added to the fact that the defendant not only poisoned his own food, but that it was still a mystery as to how he got his hands on the murder weapon and had the knowledge to use it. Has the prosecution found anything to clear this up?" The judge recapped.

"Yes, your honor. We would like to call our first witness to the stand," Zach said, turning to where they witness's sat. A young woman stood and walked over to the witness stand, her pigtails trailing behind her.

"Name and occupation," Zach said.

"Isabella Donald. I'm a Freshman at Nodir," she replied.

"Alright, Miss. Donald. Tell us about two days before the murder."

Isabella nodded, took a deep breath, and began. "It was the fourth of October, around midnight."

" _Hold it!_ Was it just before midnight, or after?" Phoenix asked, fishing for more information.

"Um…" Isabella's eyebrows drew together, a finger to her chin, as she tried to remember. "I guess after."

"So… it was actually October fifth?"

" _OBJECTION!"_ Zach yelled, pointing at the defense attorney. Meanwhile, Miles face palmed, remembering an exchange almost exactly like this between Phoenix and a certain photographer when the Miles himself had sat in the defendant's chair. "Is this seemingly pointless line of questioning truly necessary, Sir Baker?" he demanded.

"Mr. Wright, what are you doing!?" Apollo hissed, embarrassed for his boss.

"I-I was just fact checking, that's all!" Phoenix replied to both of them, rubbing the back of his head, sweat pouring down his face."

"Well, do your fact checking somewhere else!" Zach snapped, his patience much shorter in his exhausted state. He then turned to the witness stand. "Please, continue," he added in a calmer voice.

"I was working on a project that required me to check on my plants every five hours, so I returned to Quanter Hall, to the fifth floor.

" _Hold it!_ What kind of project would this be?" Phoenix asked.

"I was to take care of a very delicate plant. The conditions had to stay perfect, meaning I had to be there often," Isabella explained with a shrug. "It was an annoying project, especially when my plant died," she added.

"Another pointless line of questioning, Sir Baker. Please continue your testimony, Miss. Donald," Zach said, his arms crossed.

"Wow he's mean today. I wonder if it's because of lack of sleep…" Apollo mumbled.

"Probably," Phoenix muttered back, his eyes glued to the witness stand as she continued.

"I didn't… see anyone at that time, but I noticed a few leaves missing from the Triflingara plant."

" _Hold it!_ What were you doing close enough to the Triflingara plant to notice this?" Phoenix asked.

"I had to walk past it to get to my plant. And the spots where leaves are pulled off of the stem are a very pale green, compared to the darker green of rest of the plant," she explained. "They kind of stick out like a sore thumb."

Apollo quickly pulled the picture of the plant up on his phone and nodded, showing Phoenix.

"She's right."

"Figures."

"I did find proof that someone was there though," she continued.

" _Hold it!_ What kind of proof?" Phoenix demanded. For the first time that morning, a smile flashed across the persecutor's face, though it was more of a smirk.

"I'm glad you asked, Sir Blue Knight," he said, before holding up a small baggy. "This is the evidence of which she speaks." Inside the bag was a single strand of sandy brown hair. "We've already had the DNA tested. This is from the head of one Mr. Luke Triton, found on the fifth floor of Quanter Hall."

"Where's the proof it wasn't there from earlier?" Phoenix demanded.

"As you yourself pointed out yesterday, Mr. Triton doesn't study _plants_. He'd have no reason to be in that building, let alone that floor! This strand of hair places Mr. Triton in a place he clearly didn't belong, where he could have _easily_ obtained the murder weapon."

 _No!_ Phoenix thought frantically, looking over at the defendant's chair, where Luke was staring at the baggy in Zach's hand with dismayed – and confused – eyes. He then looked over at Phoenix, who could see the fear in them. _Something… I need something… anything!_ The defense attorney thought.

"This still doesn't explain how my client would have known of the poisonous properties of this specific plant!" he argued, stalling for time.

"Luke studies all the time. He's constantly in the library. Perhaps he came across it in one of the books he's reading?" Isabella suggested. Phoenix frowned slightly.

"She's hiding something," Apollo muttered, fingering his bracelet.

"I know. I sense it too. I just… can't get a clear read on her," Phoenix replied, before shaking his head. "This still doesn't prove anything! Why would my client poison his own dinner!? That mystery still remains," Phoenix said, remembering that point.

"And I have a witness who can prove why," Zach stated, bringing the defense attorney up short.

"Y-you do?"

"Yes. Miss. Donald, you may step down." As she stepped down, Jakob Ronald stepped up.

"Mr. Ronald, please tell us about the time leading up to Mr. Lacker's death," Zach said. Phoenix frowned, noticing how Zach seemed to be rushing today's trial.

 _Is it because of how tired he is? Why didn't he sleep last night?_ He thought. The judge frowned slightly.

"Prosecutor, it's my job to direct the proceedings," he said. Zach glanced up at him.

"I'm sorry, your honor. I meant no disrespect," he said. The judge started slightly, sitting up straighter in surprise. Any other prosecutor would have went off, threatened, or used psychology to manipulate him. None would have apologized, at least not sincerely.

It was… refreshing.

"I-it's alright. Mr. Ronald, please tell us about the time leading up to Mr. Lacker's death," he said. Jakob glanced between the two before nodding.

"Alright. As was said yesterday, Luke and Tobis were arguing," he began. Phoenix decided to not press this statement. After all, the last time he pressed an obvious statement, he had been teased about it.

"Before that, Luke had gotten both himself and Tobis salads. At the time, I was recording something behind their table on my phone, so I got a recording of it," Jakob continued.

" _Hold it!_ Why wasn't this evidence submitted to the court yesterday?" Phoenix asked.

"Well… I didn't realize I had caught their table on camera, and I didn't look at it until yesterday, what with everything going on. As soon as I saw I did, I called Detective Skye," Jakob explained.

"Alright, I guess that makes sense…" Phoenix mumbled.

"Tobis came in late, they started arguing, then Tobis collapsed, as was already stated." Again, Phoenix didn't press this statement.

"It's all there, in the video," Jakob continued, and soon, the video was playing for all to see. Phoenix studied it closely, ignoring the main action of a few girls playing volleyball with a balled up paper towel, and watching Luke. He got up, grabbed their food, then sat. Tobis finally entered, and the two started arguing.

" _You are the laziest, most undependable lout ever…_ " Luke on the recording growled, rubbing his head as though he had a headache. Luke himself winced at that, knowing exactly what came next.

" _Whoa, hey, tha—"_ Tobis cut off with the strange noise, a cough, and a wet splat before he collapsed forward.

" _Tobis? Tobis! Wake up! This isn't funny!"_ Luke cried desperately, shaking the boy's shoulders.

" _Oh, shit!"_ a disembodied voice hissed, and suddenly, the video went crazy as the phone was thrown onto the table. Phoenix's attention, however, was stuck on the beginning of the recording, right after Luke had gotten the salads.

There was no Triflingara leaves on top of Luke's.

"I see you noticed it as well, Sir Blue Knight. Mr. Triton didn't put the leaves on his own until _after_ he could be assured of Mr. Lacker's death, in order to make him appear innocent as well."

"I don't think so, Prosecutor Barnham. Luke's behavior in the video shows that he was surprised by the collapsing, and his guilt about his last words to Lacker only seems to make matters worse. Besides, with the number of witnesses around, how can Luke explain if he was caught adding something to his food? There is just… too many contradictions with this case." Phoenix quickly looked through his evidence with a sinking heart. They had nothing to help in this moment. "The defense calls for one more day to investigate in order to clear these up these contradictions!"

"There's are no contradictions, Mr. Wright, you're just grasping at straws now," Zach said with a small frown.

"I agree with Mr. Wright," the judge said, shaking his head slightly. "That was not the reaction of a killer, even a new one. Tomorrow will be the last day of the trail. Court is now dismissed!

…

 **A/N:** Sorry if it seems a little rushed. I really didn't mean to!


	7. Investigation - Day Three

**A/N:** I'm back! This story's going fast, too! Only two more chapters after this one. Can you believe that?

Well, onward with this chapter!

…

Chapter Seven: Investigation – Day Three

Zach leaned against his rented white Mercedes Brabus, deep in thought. Luke's reaction in that cell phone video kept playing over and over in his head. He couldn't get the… the _fear_ of Luke's voice out of his head.

"Zacharias?" Zach opened his eyes, finding himself face to face with Miles Edgeworth.

"Chief Prosecutor," he said, standing up straight, a last remnant of his Knightly training. Miles smiled at that slightly, recognizing it now that he knew the true story behind the man in front of him.

"Are you alright? You look exhausted," he said, crossing his arms.

"I… yes, I'm okay. I just…"

"Didn't sleep well last night?"

"No. I tried your suggestion, of using memory triggers. My mother had a favorite song that puts me right to sleep, but it didn't work. I still had nightmares," Zach admitted.

"It must not be a strong enough trigger then," Edgeworth mused, before studying the prosecutor again. "But I feel there's something else bothering you."

"I… Mr. Edgeworth, I'm starting to doubt Luke Triton's guilt," he admitted.

"On what basis?"

"First, I've met Luke before. He's smart. If he was planning to poison someone, he would have disposed of the poison as soon as he used it, not kept it in his bag. But he's not like that, and I doubt arguments about school work would force his hand like that."

"Even if grades were one of the most important things to him?" Miles asked. Zach nodded, cupping his chin.

"Yes, even then. Finally, there's the fact of _when_ did the poison end up in Luke's food, and his reaction to Mr. Lacker's death. It was almost like… it traumatized him as well." He looked up at his boss. "I know it's my job to get a guilty conviction, but… I can't send an innocent man to jail. Especially one who has so much of his life ahead of him."

"I agree," Miles said with a warm smile. "Besides, it's not just our job as prosecutors to get the guilty verdict. That only applies to the guilty defendants. But when there's an innocent defendant on the stand, it is the prosecutor's job to force the defense attorney to prove, _beyond a doubt_ , that the defendant is, indeed, innocent. Do you follow?"

Zach looked at Miles in surprise as his words sank in.

"We play the devil's advocate in those cases," he said, and Miles smiled.

"Yes. Now, if you truly believe Mr. Triton is innocent, go find the evidence you will need tomorrow in court. And do not worry, Phoenix Wright will no disappoint when it comes to defending his clients." Miles smiled fondly at a memory. "Especially if they are a friend of his."

"Thank you, Chief Prosecutor," Zach said with a smile.

"Zacharias, please, you can just call me Miles," he said, clasping the man on the shoulder before walking away. Zach watched after him in surprise, getting the feeling that not many people got that privilege. He then climbed into his car and took off, ready to continue his investigation.

…

Phoenix, Apollo, and Maya waited as Luke was led into the visitor's room of the detention center once they were done questioning him. Apollo was shaking his head at Maya, who was quietly teasing Phoenix about his reaction to her going into the flames. She'd been at it every free moment they got since Zach told them.

"Miss. Fey, how are you so calm about that? Didn't it scare you?" Apollo asked, looking over at the woman, who smiled warmly at him.

"Nope!"

"Liar," Phoenix immediately countered.

"Oh alright. It did… a little. But I'm okay, right? So why make it depressing?" Maya countered.

"True…" Apollo trailed off as their client sat in front of them.

"Hey guys," Luke said with a tiny smile.

"Hey, Luke. How you holding up?" Phoenix asked.

"As well as I can, given the circumstances. They just questioned me about when I was in Quanter Hall," he replied, shaking his head. "To be honest, I'm surprised you're my visitors, heh. Pearl's been here as much as possible, keeping my company."

"This is where she's been? Good to know. How the elders of the village can stop worrying," Maya said, laughing.

"Well, Luke, it's Quanter Hall we want to ask you about. When have to been there?" Phoenix asked.

"Never," Luke answered, looking between the three.

"But your hair was found there. You must have been, at least once," Apollo replied. Luke looked down with a small sigh.

"So, you don't believe me either," he said softly.

"We're just trying to get to the bottom of this mystery, Luke, that's all," Phoenix said, before getting an idea and pushing his hand into his pocket, fingering the Magatama. Apollo had the same idea, pressing his fingers against his bracelet.

"I know, but I'm telling you, I've never been inside Quanter Hall! I have no idea how my hair got there!" Luke said, looking between the two. Silence ruled to room for a moment longer before Phoenix nodded.

"Alright. I believe you," he said, removing his hand from his pocket.

"Same here," Apollo said, dropping his hand from his bracelet. Luke looked surprised.

"Wait… just like that? What changed?" he asked.

"Nothing. These two are just human lie detectors!" Maya said brightly, putting her hands on both men's shoulders.

"Maya…" Phoenix said, before shaking his head.

"Oh…" Luke mumbled, before an officer came in.

"Meeting's over," he grunted.

"Wait, what? But we have more questions for our client!" Apollo said. The officer shook his head.

"So do we." With that, Luke sighed.

"Guess I'll see you later," he said, following the officer back.

"Damn…" Apollo mumbled.

"Well, now what?" Maya asked.

"Now, we returned back to Quanter Hall and see if we can figure out how Luke's hair got there," Phoenix said, leading the two out.

…

Once in Quanter Hall, the trio ran into Isabella Donald once more. She was carefully pruning a small, flowering shrub with the utmost of care, muttering to it as she did so.

"Uh… why are you talking to that plant?" Apollo asked. Isabella jumped slightly, looking around at the three.

"You guys!" she gasped in surprise.

"Didn't Nick tell you that talking to a plant while you take care of it, it grows better?" Maya asked.

"No. I thought he knew, since he's always talking to Charley…" Phoenix said before Apollo could respond. Apollo sighed softly.

"I just wanted a sympathetic ear to complain to about the chaos in the office…" he muttered, though he went unheard.

"I thought Charley looked a lot more lively since Apollo started there!" Maya said with a huge grin.

"Um… can I help you guys?" Isabella asked.

"Oh, right. We wanted to talk to you more about the night you were here, when you found Luke's hair," Phoenix said.

"Well, like I said, I came here to check on my project," she said.

"What kind of project was it?" Apollo asked.

"I had to grow and study a specific type of plant – a Harring Flower. They're native really only to a tiny island off the coast of England, and usually need the other flora around there to grow. I'm attempting to see if, under the right conditions, they can grow elsewhere," Isabella explained.

"Which is why you have to check on it so often," Phoenix said while Maya studied to flower. It seemed… familiar to her.

"Right. Other then finding the hair and missing leaves though, nothing else out of the ordinary happened that night. Now, if you don't mind, I really need to get to class," she said, rushing off. Apollo frowned after her.

"Mr. Wright, something…"

"Seems off about her? I agree," he said, before sighing. "Let's continue searching."

Thre trio found nothing in the greenhouse like room, leading them to investigate the rest of the building.

"Hey look, a ladder!" Maya said brightly, pointing to a stepladder leaning against a wall in the lobby of the building.

"I wonder what a ladder is doing here…" Apollo mused.

"That's actually a 'step'-ladder," Phoenix said.

"Well, excuse us for our lack of ladder discrimination," Apollo said, crossing his arms and looking over at the older man, how looked surprised.

"Yeah, Nick, stop being a stick in the mud. They do the same thing. You need to stop judging things based on narrow-minded cultural assumptions!"

Phoenix looked between the two, unsure as to what to say.

"As for your original questions, Mr. Justice, a janitor was just in here, changing a light," a voice full of laughter said from behind. The trio turned to find Zacharias Barnham walking over to them. Phoenix almost groaned in embarrassment when he realized the prosecutor hear all of that.

"Ah, that would explain it," Apollo said, also looking mildly embarrassed.

"Prosecutor Barnham! You're investigating too?" Maya asked.

"Of course. After all, I have to make sure I'll be able to defeat Sir Blue Knight in our final battle of wits tomorrow," he said.

"Are you ever going to call me by my name?" Phoenix asked, causing Zach to chuckle.

"Perhaps, one day," he said.

"Hm. Well, we need to continue our investigation," Phoenix said. Zach nodded.

"Of course. Good luck," he said, heading towards the door. Maya noticed something fall out of his pocket and ran over, picking it up.

"It's a flash drive," she said, before turning it over and gasping.

"What?" Phoenix asked, quickly coming over.

"It says 'security footage' on it!"

"Well, then lets find somewhere to watch it!" Apollo said. Phoenix nodded, handing the drive to Apollo.

"Go find a computer lab and do so. We're going to finish investigating here" he said. Apollo nodded and jogged off. Phoenix then looked around at everything. The first, and most obvious spot, was the overflowing trashcan, causing his to sigh.

"Why did I send him away?" he asked, looking up at Maya, who laughed.

"He's the only one who knows computers out of the three of us? Alright, Nick! Roll up those sleeves and start digging!" she said brightly. Phoenix sighed, but pulled off his blazer, rolled up his sleeves, and started.

About fifteen minutes later, halfway down the trashcan, Phoenix straightened, wincing at a crack from his back, and held up a light blue hairbrush, the bristles snared with sandy, light brown hair.

"Thinking what I'm thinking?" he asked Maya.

"That you need a bath? Yes."

"No! About the brush!"

"Oh!" she studied it. "It almost looked…"

"Like it could be Luke's."

"Miss. Fey, Mr. Wri-whoa…" Apollo stopped, putting a hand to his nose as he looked at Phoenix. "Trash can?"

"Trash can. What did you find, Apollo?"

"Well, not once does Luke ever appear on screen. It's from the camera that over see's the only stairwell that goes to the fifth floor, so unless Luke flew, there's no way he was ever up there in the timeframe he would need to be to leave that hair."

"Good. I think we might have found another clue," Phoenix said, holding up the brush.

"Should we go ask Luke if that's his?" Apollo asked. Phoenix nodded and, after a trip to the bathroom for him, the trio headed back to the detention center.

…

Luke was still in questioning when they got there.

"Now what?" Apollo asked.

"Mr. Wright, is that you?" someone asked before Phoenix could answer. The trio turned to find Clark Triton walking over.

"Mr. Triton," Phoenix said, walking over. "How are you holding up?"

"As well as I can, given the circumstances," he sighed, closing his eyes. "Please tell me you're on to something."

"We might be," Phoenix said, putting his hand to his chin for a moment, before realizing something. "Maybe you can answer our question. Do you know if this belongs to Luke?" he asked, pulling out the brush, now sealed in an evidence bag.

"Why… yes, it does. Where did you find it?"

"In the trashcan in the lobby of Quanter Hall. Any idea of how it got there?"

"Well… a few days ago, Luke was running late for a class, so he drove himself across campus," Clark started, crossing his arms. "Around lunch, Luke called the police because someone had broken into his car. The back seat window was shattered, and his belongings scattered around in it. He had forgotten his wallet in there, and all of the money inside had been cleaned out." Clark shook his head. "When we got home that night, he realized his hairbrush was missing. I didn't connect it at the time, but when Luke ran out that morning, I do remember him taking his brush with him…"

"So maybe someone wanted to frame Luke and saw his brush sitting in his car, so they broke in…" Phoenix mused.

"But why take his money?" Apollo asked.

"To make it look like a normal break in. After all, wouldn't it be strange if the only thing missing from a car that was broken into was a hairbrush?" Maya supplied, to which Phoenix and Apollo nodded in agreement.

"So, this proves someone was trying to frame Luke of murder?" Clark asked. Phoenix smiled, looking at the brush.

"Not conclusively, no. But it's a start."

…

 **A/N:** Alright! Here we are!

Whose trying to frame Luke!?

I already had the ladder gag planned, once I realized Maya and Apollo would totally gang up on Phoenix, hehe. When I went to write that is when I discovered the Ace Attorney Wikai has an entire page dedicated to that argument!

Wolfiered23, you predicted what I did right before I posted this chapter…


	8. Trial - Day Three

**A/N:** After a successful spider hunt and extraction in my room, and dinner and a movie with mom, here's the next chapter!

…

Chapter Eight: Trial – Day Three

 _Zacharias Barnham stood in the Witches Cage, the heat from below nearly unbearable. He watched as a wooden platform was wheeled over, two knights, and Espella Cantabella on top._

 _Once it reached him, one of the knights unlocked the cage, allowing Zach to step onto the platform, where he faced the blond girl._

" _Espella…" he mumbled._

 _Espella gave him a small nod before stepping past him and into the Witches Cage, where a knight locked her in._

 _The platform began to move away from the cage. Zach studied Espella, the fear and sadness in her face, before taking a deep breath, determination surging through him. He took two steps forward, jumped onto the railing, then lunged forward, grabbing onto the cage hanging over the fire pit, feeling the fingers of the knights graze the air just behind him. Espella gasped in surprise, grabbing the cage to keep her balance._

" _Maya!" he distantly heard Phoenix yell, but his attention was on the lock of the cage, thankful it didn't require a key._

" _Espella, this just isn't right!" he said as he opened the door and turned, searching."Let's go!" He spotted the surprised defender. "Nick! Give me a hand!"_

 _Phoenix looked surprised for a moment before giving a determined nod, running over and jumping on the back of the knight who controlled the lever._

" _Jump! Jump over there!" Zach told Espella, looking over towards the chandelier. Espella hesitated, staring at it._

" _B-but…"_

 _Zach looked back towards the moving platform, seeing it come closer again. "Hurry!" he yelled. Espella finally did so, just as one of the knights jumped onto the cage. Zach moved to the side, in front of the entrance to it, in order to avoid being jumped on. The cage rocked wildly, and Zach was thrown inside of it, just before the door closed and relocked. He quickly looked down towards the lever, seeing Phoenix knocked away from the knight, who grabbed the lever and pulled. A cry of fear was ripped from him as the cage began to close around him._

" _M-Maya!" Phoenix yelled from where he was being held down by the knights. Zach quickly looked out the last, remaining opening of the cage, locking eyes with the man, tears of fear entering his own._

" _Help me, Nick!"_

 _That entranced closed, and the cage dropped. The metal around Zach burned red, the heat searing him to the bone._

Zach's eyes flew open with a cry of pain and fear as he surged up, his heart running a marathon in his chest. He was drenched in an icy sweat.

"Zacharias…?" Zach flinched at the voice, before looking around, suddenly realizing he was sitting on the floor of his office, in the prosecutor's building, in America, many years after the last Witch Trial. He looked up to find Edgeworth standing over him, his own eyes widened slightly in worry.

"M-Miles," he said, before frowning slightly at how shaky his voice sounded.

"Are you alright? You were crying out in your sleep," he said. Zach nodded, taking a few deep breaths to calm down, before carefully standing, never noticing Miles' offer of help.

"Yes. What time is it?" he asked.

"Five. In the morning. Did you fall asleep here?"

"It would seem that way," he said, pouring himself a cup of tea with shaky hands. As he put the teapot down, he realized something.

That dream – _memory_ – had been through the eyes of another. He had seen everything as Maya Fey had seen it, even felt the fear she had felt. The tea cup slipped through his fingers, hitting the ground and shattering at this realization. Miles quickly stepped forward, putting a hand on Zach's back.

"Zacharias, are you sure you're alright? This last dream seems to have really shaken you up," he said, steering the man into his desk chair, which was turned away from his surprisingly messy desk.

 _I must have fallen asleep at my desk, and my thrashing knocked me to the floor…_ he thought before looking at the Chief Prosecutor.

"Y-yes… I'm fine. Just… tired."

"It will make you feel better to talk about it. Believe me, holding it in will do nothing to help you," Miles warned. Another moment of hesitation, then Zach put his head in his hands with a deep sigh.

"In Labyrinthia, Maya Fey had come under suspicion of being a witch," he started. "Mr. Wright, of course, defended her, and won, but… another woman, a friend of theirs', confessed of being the Great Witch Bezella. Miss. Fey attempted to free her, and in the chaos, succeeded. However, Miss. Fey became trapped in the cage again, which was then dropped into the flames." He shuddered, remembering that part of the dream. "Most of us were horrified, though I believe the town thought she deserved it for trying to free Bezella…"

"This was the content of your dream?" Miles asked.

"Yes, but unlike my other dreams, I wasn't simply a by stander, or seeing it through my own eyes. I saw it… through the eyes of Miss. Fey herself."

"Oh…" Miles fell silent, unable to imagine what that must have been like.

"I'll be alright, don't worry," Zach said, standing back up and cleaning the teacup up. He realized that Miles had been right: talking about the dream did help. He now felt calmer. He might not be able to stop the dreams (his latest attempt, the herbal tea, did nothing to trigger good memories before he fell asleep), but at least he wasn't shaking. He then realized something.

"What are you doing here so early?" he asked.

"I normally come in around this time, and the guard at the front desk said you never left last night, so I decided to come check on you," Miles explained.

"Ah. Well, I'm going to go home now and finish my preparations before court later," Zach said, giving the prosecutor a nod before heading out.

As he drove home, he thought over his investigation from yesterday. Everything he saw and heard.

Suddenly, he realized something. Something that would just turn this whole case on it's head. He pulled over and whipped out his cell phone, making a call and putting it to his ear.

"Hello? Detective Skye? Yes, I'm sorry for waking you up, but this is rather important. I need you to look into something for me before trial today."

…

"Court will now resume for the trial of Luke Triton. Is the prosecution ready?" the judge asked, looking over at the Prosecutor's bench.

"Yes, your honor," Zach said, standing straight. Miles glanced at him, worried about the man after finding him thrashing in his sleep on the floor of his office, but staying quiet for now.

"Is the defense ready?"

"Yes, your honor," Phoenix said, though he looked a little tired himself. After all, he worked late into the night last night, preparing his case. This didn't stop him from starting out of the gate, though. "The defense would like to exercise its right to call a witness," he said. The judge looked surprised, but nodded.

"Alright then, Mr. Wright. Call your first witness then."

"I call the defendant himself," Phoenix said. Luke looked up in surprise before walking over to the witness stand.

 _A young boy at the witness stand in that smoky courtroom, his blue hat pulled half over his sad eyes, seemingly lost—_

 _Stop it!_ Zach thought firmly to himself, forcing himself out of the flashes of the past.

"You okay?" Miles muttered. Zach nodded, before looking at Luke.

"Name and occupation."

"Um… Luke Triton. And I'm a student…" he said.

"What would you like the witness to testify about, Mr. Wright?" the judge asked.

"Please tell us about why your hair was found in Quanter Hall, Mr. Triton," Phoenix said. He knew the prosecution would rip apart Luke's testimony, but he also knew he had the evidence to counter him.

"I don't know how my hair got there," Luke began. His eyes flickered between the two lawyers, but neither seemed inclined to interrupt him at the moment, so he continued.

"After all, I'd never stepped foot in that building in my life."

" _OBJECTION!"_ Zach yelled, pointing at Luke. "You hair places you there!"

" _OBJECTION!"_ Phoenix countered, pointing at Zach with a small smirk. "Security footage negates that piece of evidence!"

"What!?" Zach gasped, before remembering the flash drive he had collected, then lost, yesterday. He had never got a chance to watch it.

"You dropped this yesterday," Phoenix said, holding up the flash drive. "It is the footage from the camera in the only staircase leading up to the fifth floor," Phoenix explained.

"The only staircase?" the judge asked.

"There are three staircases in Quanter Hall, your honor, but because the fifth floor contains dangerous substances, making it have restricted access, you need a student ID, registered with the door to unlock it. This door can only be found at the top of _one_ staircase," Phoenix explained. "We didn't have time to pull the records for that door, but there's no need. Luke Triton is not shown _once_ in this footage!"

Muttering erupted from the gallery, causing the judge to slam his gavel a few times.

"Order, order!" he yelled until silence reigned again. "If that's the case, then how did the defendant's hair end up on the fifth floor, Mr. Wright?" the judge demanded.

" _Take that!"_ he yelled, holding up the baggy with the hairbrush in it. "This is the defendant's hairbrush, having gone missing from his car the day before the leaves were taken. It was found in a trashcan in Quanter Lobby," Phoenix explained.

"There's no proof of that!" Zach growled. Phoenix smirked, enjoying having the upper hand for once, as he pulled a piece of paper from his bag.

"I have here a signed affidavit from Mr. Clark Triton, the defendant's father, stating that his son's car was broken into, and money was missing. Later that night, Luke realized his brush too, went missing, and it had been in the car at the time of the break in." Phoenix looked up from the paper. "If you don't believe me, then look into the police report. True, the brush isn't reported among the missing items, but who would think to report a hairbrush missing?"

"Astonishing, Mr. Wright! Are you saying someone framed Mr. Triton?" the judge asked.

"Yes, your honor."

"Unfortunately," Zach began, standing straight, his arms crossed. "Luke Triton is the only person who could have added the Triflingara leaves to Mr. Lacker's dinner. Not once did Luke leave the food unattended."

"What!? Is this true?" he asked, looking at Luke. He nodded sadly.

"Yes, Mr. Wright. And I didn't see anyone go near it. But I swear, I didn't do it!"

"Maybe it was in the spinach on the salad bar?" Apollo mused from where he was standing next to Phoenix at the bench.

"No. A lot more students would have died, had that been the case," Phoenix said.

"Right…"

"But how would Luke have gotten those leaves? None of this is adding up," Phoenix said, trying to think through the problem.

 _Once you eliminate the impossible, whatever remains must be the truth, no matter how improbable it may seem…_ _That's it! I need to turn this case on it's head and find the improbable!_ Phoenix thought. He quickly dug through the evidence gathered thus far, studying every aspect of it from every angle. Suddenly, he stopped, staring at the cell phone footage gained from Jakob Ronald in court the day before.

"Mr. Wright?" Apollo asked. Phoenix glanced up at Apollo before leaning over, showing it to him.

"Do you see what I see?" he said. Apollo studied the video before his own eyes widened.

"No…" he gasped in disbelief, "does this mean…?"

"Yes."

"Mr. Wright?" the judge asked.

"Your honor… it is the defenses belief that Mr. Lacker wasn't poisoned at dinner, but some time before!" Phoenix announced.

"What!?" Miles gasped, though Zach stayed silent. Just then, the door slammed open, and Ema Skye rushed in.

"I'm sorry for the interruption, but new evidence about this case has come to light!" Ema cried, sending the gallery into an uproar.

…

Unable to bring about order, the judge instead announced a thirty minute recess.

"Mr. Wright, what did you mean that Tobis wasn't poisoned at dinner? That's when he died…" Luke asked. Phoenix pulled out the footage, showing it to Luke.

"Look closely at his salad. There aren't _any_ Triflingara leaves there. Yet, after scarfing it down, he collapses," Phoenix explained. Luke nodded, looking up at the older man. "This means he must have been poisoned by some slow acting poison."

"You're right," Ema said, coming into the defendant's lobby.

"Ema. What's this new evidence you found?" Apollo asked, going over to the woman, who grinned at him.

"A report and some cream cheese," she said, putting a folder and a container out.

"Huh?"

"The report is on an analysis of Tobis Lacker's hair. Right near the scalp are traces of poisoning."

"There are traces of poisoning in his hair?" Apollo asked.

"Yes," Ema said with a grin. "The human body is amazing. With the right tools, you can tell the environment, nutrition, and drug habits of a person, just from a single strand of hair!" she said brightly.

"Including poison?" Apollo asked, to which Ema nodded brightly.

"Yes. Now, it's about half a fourth of a centimeter, meaning his poisoning hadn't been happening for long, but it went all the way down to his roots, meaning it happened again on that day, which brings me to the cream cheese. A thorough analysis of it shows that a type of oil has been added to it. Harring Flower oil."

"What does that mean?" Apollo asked.

"Harring Flower oil is very poisonous," Ema explained grimly.

"Of course…" Phoenix gasped, his eyes widening.

"Ema, you're brilliant!" Apollo said with a huge grin, making the woman blush slightly. "But what made you look into this at all?"

"Prosecutor Barnham, actually," she admitted. "He called me early this morning and asked me to look for signs of long term poisoning. I don't know what gave him the idea, but he sounded kind of desperate. Almost like _he_ was the defense attorney." Ema smiled. "It's actually quite admirable…" Apollo looked down with a scowl, his grin gone in a flash.

"Of course. Barnham cares for the truth, not about any kind of win record," Phoenix said with a smile.

"Just like Mr. Edgeworth…" Ema sighed again in a star struck way, causing Apollo's frown to deepen. Phoenix, on the other hand, had other things on his mind.

"Thanks Ema. You just blew this case wide open. I know who the culprit is," Phoenix said with a warm smile.

"Anytime, Mr. Wright!" Ema replied, just as it was time to re-enter the courtroom.

…

"Court will now reconvene," the judge announced. "Just before the recess, there was new evidence?"

"Yes, your honor. The defense also brought up the possibility that Mr. Lacker was poisoned before dinner that night," Zach said.

"And now we have the evidence to prove it," Phoenix replied, holding up both pieces of evidence that Ema had given him. "This is an analysis on Mr. Lacker's hair, showing he'd been ingesting poison for a few days before his death," he said, tapping the report before setting it down and picking up the cream cheese. "And this is the culprit, found in the victim's mini-fridge, with his name written on it. An analysis on this shows that Harring Flower oil was added to it," Phoenix explained.

"'Harring Flower oil?' What's that?" the judge asked.

"A bloom native only to the small island of Labyrinthia, just off the coast of England," Zach said, his arms crossed. "The only poisonous part of that plant is the oil."

"Labyrinthia? Where he's from?" Apollo asked. Phoenix nodded.

"Yeah. He must have recognized it when he was investigating, which is what prompted him to asked Ema to look into it…" Phoenix replied, before looking up. "There is only one person connected to this case with access to both the flower and the victim's food. The defense moves to officially indict Miss. Isabella Donald of the murder of her boyfriend, Tobis Lacker!" Phoenix announced, causing another uproar in the gallery, though the judge managed to regain order this time.

"My word!" he gasped softly. Phoenix simply nodded, anger rolling through him, like a fire just beneath his skin. Poison and betrayal where at the top of his list of things he hated, due to his past with a certain woman. This was the same exact situation, except Phoenix survived, and Tobis did not.

"I call Isabella Donald to the witness stand!" he said. After a few moments, she stood behind the stand, tears already streaking her face.

"The defense has accused you of murdering your boyfriend, Miss. Donald. Testify as to your reaction to this turn of events," the prosecutor said.

"I…" she hesitated, before totally breaking down. "I killed him… I'm so sorry… I'm so sorry, Tobis…" she sobbed, burying her face in her hands. Shock ruled the courtroom as everyone stared at the young woman. No culprit had ever admitted so easily.

"Why?" Phoenix asked. "Why would you kill him?"

"I didn't mean to!"

"So you just slipped poison into his cream cheese, accidently?" Zach demanded.

"N-no. I… Harring Flower… the petals, when made into a tea, is a cure for migraines." She looked up, her eyes bloodshot. "They have to relatively fresh though, so when I gave some to another student, I had to give them a whole flower. I… the other student… was complaining of migraines… I was just trying to help…" she sniffled.

"So you didn't actually put the Harring Flower oil in the cream cheese?" Phoenix asked. More tears welled into Isabella's eyes.

"N-no… but it might of well been me! It's virtually unknown at school that the oil is poisonous!" she sobbed.

"Ms. Donald, please, tell us who it was. Who killed Tobis Lacker?" Phoenix demanded. Isabella hesitated for a moment, before turning to face the gallery, her eyes searching for one person, though all she found was his empty seat.

"H-he ran… it was Jakob, but now he's gone!"

"Bailiff, quickly! Send a search out for Jakob Ronald!" the judge snapped.

"Yes sir!" the man called, rushing out.

The judge shook his head. "What a case, he murmured.

"Indeed…" Zach sighed.

"But… what motive did Jakob have for doing this? And how did he get into the room, where the cream cheese was?" Apollo asked.

"He was a Resident Assistant," Phoenix said. "At Ivy U, they have access to spare room keys, incase a student locks their key in there room."

"It's the same at Nodir…" Isabella said softly.

"And the motive?" Zach asked.

"He and Tobis knew each other from their hometown." Isabella sniffled. "Tobis said that his older brother used to play really mean, totally humiliating pranks on Jakob. Tobis never partook in them, but I guess, to Jakob, that didn't matter… And he was totally jealous of Luke, the former apprentice to such a famous archeologist and top of his class…" she shook her head. "I should have never told him about the oil… I just… didn't want him to hurt himself…" she broke down again, sobbing into her hands. The judge nodded.

"That clears up the rest of the mysteries of this case…" he said softly. "I find the defendant, Luke Triton, _NOT GUILTY_. I just hope a tragedy such as this never befalls these young people again. Court is dismissed."

…

Luke wrapped his arms tightly around the sobbing Isabella once they entered the defendant's lobby, rubbing her back in soothing circles in an effort to comfort her. After all, that was the duty of a true gentleman.

Jakob Ronald was soon found and charged with Tobis' murder.

"The end of another case," Phoenix said softly, watching the two college students.

"Poor Isabella. Do you think she'll ever recover from this?" Maya asked.

"Dunno. It must have been quite the shock for her," Phoenix said.

"What she was hiding the entire time was the guilt she felt. On some level, she knew, all along, that it had been Harring Flower poisoning, not Triflingara, and she blames herself, even though it wasn't her fault," Apollo reasoned out.

"Poor Isabella…" Maya sighed.

…

 **A/N:** And here is where I end this case! People kept guessing Isabella was the killer, but she wasn't! It was Jakob all along.

Jakob didn't have a punny name, but Isabella did! IsaBELLA DONAld. Like Belladonna, one of the most poisonous plants around, done for her study of poisonous plants in an attempt to find cures from them (totally possible).

One more chapter!


	9. Eve

**A/N:** At last, the final chapter. After this, I will begin outlining my next Layton fanfiction, "The City of Bronze" (Previously "The New Assistant," a Flora centric tale of what she was doing while Layton was away in America helping the Tritons (companion to "The Professor's Apprentice").

At the same time, I will begin working on the first chapter of an AU of Apollo Justice, where Apollo grew up with the Gramaryes. This one will be on my other account, WingedEmereald1992.

 **Review Reply to Gamergirl:** I did, and it continued to today as well! Barnham has a slight case of PTSD, which means he's having trouble just getting over it – he needs help. He'll get it though, no worries! And again, yep! Jakob is the true culprit though. Isabella, with help, will heal in time. I did not notice at first, but after looking back, I do now! That's pretty cool!

Now, here we go!

…

Chapter Nine: Eve

Zach rested back against the fine leather seats of Miles' car, confusion rolling through him once he saw where they were heading.

"Miles… why are we going to the airport? I've decided to stay permanently, and I don't even have any of my stuff," he said, looking over at the prosecutor, who simply adjusted his glasses without saying a word. Zach sighed softly, wondering if loosing his first case meant he was being sent back. The thought kind of saddened him, really.

…

The two men arrived at the airport just as passengers were exiting a plane from London. Zach had started towards the trunk, but Miles simply walked away without opening it for him, leaving the very confused man no other choice but to trail behind him.

"Miles, why are we here?" he asked.

"I have to pick someone up," he replied, glancing over at Zach with a smile.

"Oh…" Zach said, feeling foolish for his earlier statement. The two waited, watching the people, until a very familiar tall figure weaved her way through the crowd, her long, curly dark purple hair trailing behind her. She spotted Zach and smiled, coming over and hugging him.

"E-Eve?" he asked, surprised, before noticing she only had a carry-on bag.

"Hello, Zacharias," she said, pulling back with a warm smile, which became slightly worried. "How have you been?"

"Good. I've been good," he said, knowing Miles probably told her about his dreams. He then realized something, and turned to the Chief Prosecutor. "Miles, how are we getting back? You car only sits two."

"Miss. Belduke rented a car when she booked her plane ticket," Miles said, before checking his phone. "Ah, I have to go. You don't mind riding with her, do you?" he asked.

"No…" Miles said, watching as the man nodded.

"Alright. I'll see you at the office tomorrow." With that, the man was gone.

"Well, shall we?" Zach asked, turning to Eve and taking her bag for her. Eve smiled at the gesture before nodding, walking with him.

"I heard you lost your first case," she said softly.

"It's alright. The defendant was innocent anyway," he said with a shrug. "What car did you rent?"

"It's over here," she said, leading the way to a black convertible. Zach placed the bag into the back, and the two climbed in.

"So, where are you staying?" Zach asked once Eve managed to pull off the lot and remembered to drive on the right side of the road.

"I was going to find a hotel, to be honest," she replied.

"Oh, don't waste anymore money. You can stay with me," he replied.

"Are you sure? I don't want to put you out," Eve said, glancing sideways at the man, who smiled.

"I'm sure."

"Well, thank you," she said with a warm smile.

…

"Here you go," Zach said, pacing a teacup, on a saucer, in front of Eve on the coffee table, sitting with his own.

"Thank you," she said, taking it with a warm smile and taking a sip. "Your apartment seems comfortable."

"It is. I've been a little too busy to personalize it as of yet, but I will," he said, looking around.

"Oh, I can imagine," she said, taking another sip. A comfortable silence fell over the pair, each comfortable with the other's presence. Finally, though, Zach broke the silence.

"You're not staying long, are you?" he asked, looking over at her carry-on.

"Unfortunately, no. I have to return in a few weeks," Eve replied.

"Not that I mind, but what bought you to America in the first place?"

Eve starred into her teacup for a few moments, carefully stirring it, before letting out a sigh, placing it back on the table and turning to Zach.

"Mr. Edgeworth, actually," she said.

"Miles? What does he have to do with this?"

"He called me. Said you were having nightmares about the Witch Trials. Zach…" she reached up, putting her hands on either side of his face. The faint, citrus smell of oranges washed over him, reminding him of Eve's favorite snack. "What happened there is not your fault. You were hypnotized. You didn't know any better," she said firmly, her turquoise eyes meeting his grey.

"Eve…" Zach closed his eyes, reaching up and gently taking one of her hands, keeping it pressed against his cheek. "I always suspected something was off. And to find out they were all innocent…"

"You keep forgetting that they are all _alive_ as well," Eve interjected.

"I don't try to. I don't get to pick what I think while I dream," Zach explained. Eve sighed softly, hugging him tightly.

"I understand. I'm just trying to help you. I just… nothing that happened there was your fault, Zach. None of it. It was the fault of that damned silver bell, that's it."

Zach simply wrapped his arms around the woman, gently pressing his face into her hair, his eyes closed.

"Thank you, Eve."

…

 **A/N:** So… we all know who I ship Zach with!

Three guesses as to what Zach's going to try next to trigger good memories. Hint: It's a scent, hehe.


End file.
